Adjustable price tag



Feb, 13, 1951 R. J. MURPHY 2,541,776

ADJUSTABLE PRICE TAG Filed Aug. 16, 1946 I 2 Sheets-Sheet l 7 Pz'oizard Mar 27% y W WW Attorneys Feb. 13, 1951 R. J. MURPHY ADJUSTABLE PRICE TAG 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 16, 1946 Patented Feb. 13, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to a combination, variable price tag, especially adapted for use in stores for indicating the price of units or plurality of articles displayed for sale, and is especially intended and adapted for use in combination with conventional price tag holders of the type which are normally permanently affixed to the outer edges of store shelves and for detachably supporting price tags.

The conventional practice of most retail stores, such as grocery stores, is to detachably apply a plurality of individual indicia bearing tags to tag holders attached to the outer edges of the commodity supporting shelves for indicating the price of the commodities offered for sale and displayed on the shelves. By this arrangement, a plurality of individual tags or tickets are assembled to designate the price of a commodity. Much time is wasted in searching through a supply of such numbered tags to obtain the required numbers to form the proper combination to display the necessary information required.

Accordingly, it is a primary aim of the present invention to provide an improved arrangement of price tags wherein only two types of slips are utilized and by means of folding the slips, a wide variety of indicia may be displayed for indi cating the price of a single article or the price of a group of articles or the price of bulk material, sold by either dry or liquid measure or by package or bunch.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawings, illustrating a preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a front elevational view showing the invention applied to a price tag holder attached to the outer edge of a shelf;

Figure 2 is a plan view of one side of one element of the combination price tag;

Figure 3 is a similar view of the opposite side thereof;

Figure 4 is a similar view of one side of one section of the other element of the price tag combination;

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figures 2 and 3 of one complete side of the price tag, partly shown in Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a similar view of the opposite side thereof;

Figure '7 is an enlarged longitudinal, horizontal sectional view of a portion of the price tag element as shown in Figures 2 and 3;

Figure 8 is a view similar to Figure 2, and of a slightly modified form thereof, and

Figure 9 is a sectional view taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 99 of Figure 8.

' Referring more'specifically to the drawings,

for the purpose of illustrating the application of the invention, hereinafter to be described, in Figure 1 a portion of a shelf is indicated at I0 for supporting a plurality of articles II, offered for sale. A price tag holder, designated gener ally I2 and of a conventional construction is shown secured by fastenings I 3 to the outer edge of the shelf I0 and longitudinally thereof. The price tag holder I2 may be formed of any suitable material, such as metal and comprises an elongated strip having top and bottom edges which are turned inwardly and back upon themselves to form opposed inwardly opening channels or grooves I I for receiving the top and bottom edges of a plurality of tags having price indicia thereon.

In Figures 2 and 3, both sides of one multiple price tag is illustrated. The price tags, designated generally I5, are preferably formed from White or colored cloth in the form of an elongated strip or ribbon, suitably seamed along the edges thereof to prevent fraying and divided into sections which are numbered on one side thereof, as illustrated in Figure 2, from "1 to 5, inclusive, from left to right and with a blank space or section at the right hand end. The opposite side, as illustrated in Figure 3, bears the indicia in the left hand block /2 and the remaining blocks are numbered "6, 7, 8, 9 and 0. The strip I 5 is preferably put in a masking grille and spray painted with a clear lacquer or transparent paint which functions as a stiffening agent and provides a durable, transparent finish. The masking grille is so arranged that only the numbered sections of the strip I5 are coated on both sides thereof, as indicated at I6 in Figure '7, thus leaving small uncoated, transverse hinge portions I! therebetween which function as hinges to permit the strips to be compactly folded to ex ose a single number, as illustrated in Figure 1.

The price tag in addition to including one or a plurality of the tag strips I5 also each includes a backing sheet I8 which may be formed of any suitable, durable material, capable of being folded and which is divided longitudinally into three sections by two longitudinal fold lines I9, which are spaced substantially equal distances from one another and from top and bottom edges of the strip or sheet I8. One side of the sheet I8, as illustrated in Figure 5, bears indicia in the upper section thereof, including a and a plurality of spaced decimal points; the intermediate section includes spaced abbreviations gal. and fth. and a plurality of spaced decimal points. The bottom section includes the abbreviations pts. and qts. with spaced decimal points. Each section of the opposite side likewise includes longitudinally spaced decimal points and the following abbreviations, reading from left to right 3 and from top to bottom, lbs. and don, for and oz. and pkg. and bch.

The backing sheet 18 is adapted to be folded along the fold lines IQ for exposing any one of the three sections of either side thereof, such as the intermediate section of the side shown in Figure 6 and which is illustrat d in the folded con- .dition of the sheet l8 in Figure 4, and also shown in Figure 1. The backing sheet or plate [8, thus folded may be inserted into the holder l2 from either end thereof and so that the folded edges l9 are engaged in the inwardly opening grooves 14. In many instances, the price tag holders i2 extend from end to end of the outer edge of a shelf, in which case the folded backing plate 18 may be bowed transversely throughout its length for inserting the fold edges i9 into the channels or grooves I4 for positioning the backing sheet or plate l8 therein, as illustrated in Figure 1.

If for example, it is desired to indicate six of the items it are priced at seventy-five cents, one of the strips [5 is folded to expose the section thereof bearing the numeral 6 and thus folded is inserted into the holder 12, so that the top and bottom edges of the folded strip are engaged in the grooves 14 and so that the folded strip is disposed over the backing plate I 8 and to the left of the word for. Two additional strips ['5 are folded and similarly applied to the holder l2 and to the right of the word for and to the right of one of the decimal points, so that the backing sheet or plate I 8 and the three strips I 5 will com bine to read 6 for .75, meaning six of the items 1 I are priced at seventy-five cents.

If it is desired to advertise the items ii at a price of 16 for $1.75 the backing sheet or plate [8 and the three strips l5 applied thereover, would be displaced to the right so that a strip I5 folded to expose the numeral 1 to be placed to the left of the strip exposing the numeral 6 and the strips bearing the numerals 7 and 5 would be displaced to the right sufficiently for the insertion of another folded strip bearing the numeral 1 and positioned so that one of the decimal points only would be exposed and between the strips bearing the numerals 1 and 7. will thus be readily apparent that the numerous variations and combinations may be made, employing in each instance, one folded backing sheet or plate [8 with a plurality of the folded strips'l5.

Figures 8 and 9 illustrate a slightly modified embodiment of the strip l5, and which is designated generally 20, and which includes a plurality of longitudinally spaced tabs 2! which may 1 be numbered on both sides thereof, corresponding to the sections l6 of the strip 15, and each of which is formed of plies, suitably secured together by means of an adhesive binder. Before the plies of each of the tabs 21 are connected, a

ribbon is placed therebetween, so that spaced portions thereof will be anchored between the sections of the tabs 2| and so that the exposed parts 23 of the ribbon 22 will form hinges upon which the tabs may be folded in the same manner and for the same purpose as the numbered sections 46 of the strips 15. It will be readily obvious that the strip may be substituted for the strip l5.

It should also be noted that the strips l5 and 2B are constructed and arranged to fold along side edges thereof so that the top and bottom edges may be cut off to adapt the strips to holders I2 of various widths without affecting the utility of the strips for the purposes heretofore described.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and may obviously be resorted to, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An adjustable price tag for use with tag holders adapted for attachment to shelves and having inwardly opening channels at the top and bottom edges thereof; said price tag including a backing sheet provided with indicia on at least one side thereof including a plurality of longitudinally spaced decimal points and abbreviations indicating monetary, liquid and dry measures, said backing sheet being foldable longitudinally upon itself to expose a longitudinally extending portion only of said indicia and being adapted to be positioned, thus folded, in the tag holder and with its folded edges engaged in the channels or rooves thereof; and a plurality of strips each constituting a part of the price tag and each including a plurality of longitudinally spaced indicia bearing portions and hinge portions separating the indicia bearing portions and on which latter portions the strip is foldable to position a single indicia bearing portion in an exposed position, a plurality of said folded strips being adapted to be disposed in the holder and with the folded longitudinal edges thereof engaged by the channels or grooves of the holder and in overlying relationship to the backing sheet, and the exposed indicia of said last mentioned folded strips combining with exposed indicia of the backing sheet, located between the folded strips, to form a sign indicating the price of one or a plurality of items offered for sale.

2. An adjustable price tag as in claim 1, said strips each being formed of an elongated cloth ribbon having its spaced indicia bearing portions coated on both sides thereof and stiffened thereby, and the uncoated cloth portions disposed therebetween forming said hinge portions on which the strip is foldable.

3. An adjustable price tag as in claim 1, said strips each comprising a plurality of tabs each formed of a pair of adhesively secured plies, said tabs constituting the indicia bearing portions, and a flexible connecting ribbon having longitudinally spaced portions disposed and anchored between the tab plies for connecting th tabs in spaced relationship to one another, the unanchored portions of the flexible connecting ribbon, disposed between adjacent tabs, forming said hinge portions on which said tabs are foldable.

RICHARD J. MURPHY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 498,053 Gildemeyer May 23, 1893 1,149,081 Rand Aug. 3, 1915 1,315,892 Wilson Sept. 9, 1919 1,662,813 Cobb Mar. 20, 1928 1,824,794 Rohlfes Sept, 29, 1931 1,949,666 Shoemaker Mar. 6, 1934 2,202,268 Rohlfes May 28, 1940 2,204,767 Pavlovic June 18, 194.0

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 141,436 Switzerland Nov. 1, 1930 

